Signaling apparatus.



no. 6674305. Patented Feb. l2, |901.'

w. A. swARENQ SIGNALING APPARATUS.

(Application led Jan. 2, 1900.}

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

VILLIAM A. SVAREN, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TOHAMILTON C. KIBBIE, OF OBLONG, ILLINOIS.

SIG NALING APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N o. 667,805, datedFebruary 12, 1901. Application iiled January 2, 1900. Serial No. 56. (Nomodel.)

1'0 @ZZ whom t may concern/.-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM A. SWAREN, a citizen of the United States,residing at No. 181 Dearborn avenue, in the city of Chicago,

5 county of Cook, and State of Illinois, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Signaling Apparatus, of which the following issuch a full, clear, and eXact description as will enable others skilledin the art to which 1o it appertains to make and use my said invention.

My invention relates to apparatus of that class in which a number ofmovable parts are capable of operative adjustment in a number r 5 ofdifferent positions-such, for example, as the system of leverscontrolling interlocking railway-switches or a system of slides orlevers employed in voting-machines or analogous mechanisms.

The mechanism herein shown and described sets forth my invention asapplied to a votingmachine.

With slight modification, which will be apparent to any one skilled inthe art, my apparatus may be employed in other mechan ismswsuch, foreXample,as the system of locking-levers of interlocking railway-switchesor in other mechanisms in which it is desirable to apprise the operatorby audible signais when all of the parts are properly disposed in thedesired relation to each other, the construction and arrangement beingsuch that the signal will sound only when the parts are accuratelyadjusted in the desired relation to each other.

The purposes of my invention are to provide conductive devices `of noveland improved construction, to provide means for electrically insulatingsaid conductive de- 4o vices from each other, to provide circuit-closersof novel and improved form, and to provide a testing device of novel andimproved construction.

With these ends in View my invention consists of the novel features ofconstruction and combinations of parts shown in the annexed drawings, towhich reference is hereby made, and hereinafter particulary described,and pointed out in the claims.

Referring to the drawings, Figure l is a top plan view of the completeapparatus, and

Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse section on the line 2 2 of Fig. l.

Similar letters of reference designate parts in both views.

The apparatus may be mounted on a base A, covered by a plate A', ofinsulating material, such as hard rubber. Guides B, of insulatingmaterial, are secured on top of the plate A. rSlides E lit and slidebetween the 6o guides B and have on one of their edges lugs e, as shown.The slides E are pierced by holes e', which in diii'erent positions ofthe slides register with corresponding holes a in the plate A', thelast-named holes being equal 65 in number to the total number of unitssubject to the operation of the apparatus.

The circuit-closers consist of bifurcated springs F, secured in anysuitable way to the plate A. An electric bell G, of any suitable 7oform, is placed in a convenient position, preferably on the plate A', asshown. Posts H are secured to the base A and have near their upperextremities eyes in which the rod II slides. A suitably-placed battery Khas one terminal connected with the bell G and the other terminalconnected with the rod H'.

A post H2 is secured to the plate A and is connected by a wire with thecontiguous spring F. The bell G is also connected by a 8o wire with oneof the springs F.

When used in connection with a voting-machine, the plates A and A arepreferably pierced by a number of series of registering holesintercommunicating with a suitable box or compartment in which theballots passing through the registering holes may be deposited. Saidseries correspond in number to thenumber of parties having candidates tobe voted for, and the total number of holes 9o in all of the series isequal to the total number of candidates or measures to be voted upon.The number of slides E is preferably the same as the number of officesand measures to be voted upon, either for or against. In such use of theapparatus the slides E are respectively slid inward or outward, as maybe necessary, to bring a hole e in each of the slides into registry witha holeain the plate A corresponding to the party to which the candi- Io:date belongsl for which the voter Wishes to deposit a ballot. In orderto vote for candidates 'like for all of the oiiices represented by theslides,or to vote for or against all measures represented by a slide, orto indicate a purpose to refrain from voting as to any candidate ormeasure, it is necessary to move every one of the slides int-o suchposition that a hole c in each slide will be in registry with a hole ain the plate A', and when this occurs each one of the circuit-closers Fwill be in contact with a lug e on a slide E and the circuit may beclosed and the signal sounded by moving the bar H to bring the pin 7iinto contact with the post IP. I do not,hov.'ever, restrict my claims tothe precise construction and arrangement. of parts which I have shownand described, since it is obvious that the holes in the slides E and inthe plate A may be differently arranged or may, if used in apparatusother than a voting-machine, be entirely dispensed with withoutdeparting from the spirit of or sacrificing the advantages ot myinvention.

Instead of having holes d in the base A and .holes e/ in the slides Eregistrable with the holes a, according to the position of the slide orslides, any other suitable means may without departing from my inventionbe employed to determine or indicate the proper setting of the slidesfor the purpose desired-such, for example, as graduations 1, 2, 3, dac.,on the guides,with which pointers e2 or equivalent devices on the slidesE register at dierent stages of movement of the slides corresponding toand determining ditterent positions in which the circuit-closers F comein engagement with the lugs e of the slides E, respectively, accordingto the dit't'erent operative settings of the conductive parts or slides,or such, for example, as pins e3 or equivalent devices adapted toregister or engage with cooperative parts (not shown) of the mechanismwith which the signaling apparatus may be employed, the number of saiddetermining or coperatiif'e devices being equal to the number of unitssubject to the operation of the signaling apparatus.

Itis only essen tial that the conductive parts shall be so constructedand arranged relative to cooperating circuit-closers and a testingdevice that every one of the slides or conductive parts must be movedinto contact with a circuit-closer"before the circuit will or can becompletely closed by the testing device and the signal sounded,substantially as described.

The circuit is closed by one of the lugs e on every one of the slides Eengaging With a circuit-closer F, and no signal can be sounded so longas any one of the slides is disengaged.

In t-he drawings I have shown one of the slides as pulled outwardsufliciently to leave the lug on the slide out of contact With thecircuit-closer. If then the slide be pulled still further outward, asshown in dotted lines in Fig. l, the lug on the slide will engage withthe spring and close the circuit through all of the springs and all ofthe slides. It the rod Il be then pushed inward, a pin h thereon willengage with the post Il2 and current will pass from the battery throughthe rod II, through the post H2, through the springs F, and through theslides E to the bell G and will cause the bell to ring in a usual andwellknown manner. Acoiled spring Hgsurrounds the rod I-I and actsagainst a collar 71.' to slide the rod out of contact with the post H2.It will be seen then that after the closing` of the circuit by pushingthe rod H inward, as described, the spring I-Ij reacts to pull thel rodback and break the circuit.

In the apparatus as applied to voting-machines the rod II' may be pushedinward by the voter within the booth for the purpose of testing whetheror not he has moved all oi the slides into position to permit thedeposit of ballots for all ot' the candidates for which he wishes tovote. The rod II' may be pulled outward by the judges or otherauthorized person outside of the booth for the purpose of determiningwhether or not the voter has completed the operation of voting. In otheranalogous mechanisms the rod II may in like manner be moved to bring thepin 7L in contact with the post H2 for the purpose of determiningwhether or not all of the movable parts have been set in the desiredposition.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

l. In a signaling apparatus, the combination of insulated conductiveparts such as slides, each capable of a number of different operativesettings, means for determining all the operative settings of saidconductive parts, circuit-closers engaging with said conductive parts, asignaling device, and a battery having electrical connection with saidconductive parts, circuit-closers and signaling device; as set forth.

2. In a signaling apparatus, the combination ot' a plate of insulatingmaterial, guides of insulating material on said plate, slides ofconductive material slidable between said guides and having lugs,circuit-closers on said plate contiguous to said slides and adapted toengage with the edge ol' the slide on one side ot a circuit-closer andthe lugs ot the slide on the other side of the saine circuit-closer, apost secured to said plate, a rod mounted in supports on said plate andslidable to engage with said post, a bell, anda battery havingelectrical connection with said bell, circuit-closers, slides, post androd; as set forth.

3. In a signaling apparatus, the combination of movable conductive partssuch as slides, each capable ot a number of operative settings; meansfor determining the operative settings of said conductive parts, thenumber of said determining means being equal to the number of unitseffected by the operation of the signaling apparatus; circuit- ,closersadapted to engage with said conductive parts; a signaling device; and abattery having electrical connection with said con- IOO IIO

duetive parts, circuit-closers, and signaling device; as set forth.

4. In a signaling apparatus, the combination of movable insulatedconductive parts such as slides, each adapted for setting in a number ofdifferent operati ve positionsmieans for determining the operativesettings of said conductive parts, equal in number to the number ofunits subject to the operation of the signaling apparatus,circuit-closers engaging with said conductive parts, a signaling device,a testing device, and a battery in electrical connection With saidsignaling device, circuit-closers, conductive parts and testing device;as set forth.

5. In a signaling apparatus, the combina- WILLIAM A. SWAREN.

Witnesses:

ELIAS GOLES, ARTHUR Z. DIXON.

